Upon the completion of the course the student is able to:• understand the payment systems and their incentives used worldwide in healthcare• understand the mechanisms of the purchasing of integrated healthcare• understand purchasing models and practices that are currently applied• analyse the governance of the relationship between healthcare purchasers (e.g. insurers, municipalities) and providers (e.g. hospitals, long-term care organizations)• analyse and interpret a large amount of real-life data of a population of an insurer or municipality to set priorities for contractual negotiations

Omschrijving

Healthcare purchasers play an important role in the task division and coordination of supply chains by applying their purchasing practices. In this course students develop a better understanding of the perspective of healthcare purchasers in different health systems. How can the buyer/supplier relationship between healthcare purchasers (e.g. health insurers, municipalities) and healthcare providers be governed by contractual and relational governance? How can knowledge and information sharing affect the collaboration between healthcare purchaser and healthcare provider and between healthcare providers? What is the role of payment systems (e.g. fee-for-service, pay for performance and population-based payment) and their financial incentives in delivering the right care at the right place? In this course we will discuss the role of contract characteristics and the negotiation process on the performance of healthcare providers. This course explains advantages and disadvantages of purchasing based on price and contracts versus purchasing based on quality, long-term relationships and trust. By comparing cases within and outside the Netherlands, explanations will be given of how and why different purchasing strategies develop and how this relates to differences in healthcare systems. The main focus of the course is on the procurement of healthcare by insurers and municipalities. However, we also pay attention to the procurement of strategic items (e.g. expensive medicines, capital goods like MRI) by healthcare providers.This course is part of the focus area 'Healthcare Management'. When you focus your MSc on healthcare management subjects you will be awarded an official acknowledgement on your diploma, improving and broadening your career opportunities in the healthcare sector. Prerequisites are mentioned in the Teaching and Examiniation Regulations: 'Focus areas in the master programmes'.